


plus one.

by mercyonmyheartx



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Allison Argent & Lydia Martin Friendship, Alternate Universe - Future, Beacon Hills, F/M, Lydia Martin & Scott McCall Friendship, Lydia-centric, Past Aiden/Lydia Martin, Sassy Lydia, Scott McCall & Stiles Stilinski Friendship, Scott McCall Ships Lydia Martin/Stiles Stilinski, Stydia, Stydia Month, Stydia Week, Wolf Pack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-17
Updated: 2019-04-15
Packaged: 2019-10-11 13:08:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17447576
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mercyonmyheartx/pseuds/mercyonmyheartx
Summary: lydia rolled her eyes so hard, they nearly fell out of their sockets.she was used to his condescending and childish behaviour. she would like to think he was better than that, since their relationship in high school included some of her fondest memories, but she knew better.things were said, and actions were taken, and they all led to this moment in time: aiden steiner's wedding invitation.-prompt: lydia is invited to her exes wedding and there is no way in hell she is showing up solo. luckily, stiles is eager to show off how successful he's become. unfortunately, lydia spitefully tells everyone he is her boyfriend, so there's that.





	1. chapter one.

**Author's Note:**

> this is something i've been cooking for a while... it was supposed to be a one shot for my collection but i've been having too much fun with it and want to see where it takes me!!
> 
> there will be a second chapter for sure, but i doubt there will be more than that.. hope you all enjoy it.. please let me know your thoughts!!!

lydia rolled her eyes so hard, they nearly fell out of their sockets.

she was used to his condescending and childish behaviour. she would like to think he was better than that, since their relationship in high school included some of her fondest memories, but she knew better. their relationship had been exciting and exhilarating at the time, but towards the end, she wasn’t feeling anything. it was purely physical, and it made her feel like a terrible person to drag him along. unfortunately, he didn’t get that and when she tried to break it up, he made it seem like she was the awful one for trying to spare his feelings.

things were said, and actions were taken, and they all led to this moment in time.

aiden steiner’s wedding invitation.

as if on cue, her office phone started ringing.

“lydia martin speaking.”

“good morning lydia martin! how are you feeling on this particular day? get anything interesting in the mail?”

lydia rolled her eyes at allison’s chipper tone. “if by interesting you mean, absolutely neurotic, then yes i did.”

“now, now, lydia. as a psychologist, you probably shouldn’t be using such terms,” allison giggled. “are we still meeting up in an hour for dinner? i’m sure scott and stiles have a lot to say about this too.”

lydia sighed, quickly browsing through her calendar. “yeah, i’ll be there.”

“great! see you soon, love you!”

she ran a hand through her hair, flipping past the invitation to the card meant to be sent back. as if getting an invitation to an ex-boyfriend’s wedding wasn’t bad enough, there was an option for a plus-one.

lydia groaned loudly, her head falling down onto her desk.

**…**

lydia loved her job, there was no doubt about that. she loved being able to use her expertise every day, and seriously questioned why she used to dumb herself down every day in high school. the only part she didn’t love about her job was having to dress in heels every single day. it was great within the first hour, but nine hours later, she was about to throw them in the trash.

by the time she got to the restaurant, allison, scott and stiles were already there, waiting for her. she was never good at being punctual, especially not now with a job that demanded her attention at odd hours of the day. their jobs weren’t much better time-wise; allison was a nurse, scott a veterinarian and stiles a lawyer.

lydia’s heart stuttered slightly when she saw stiles in his crispy, white dress shirt and slacks. he’s come a long way from his khaki’s and flannel. allison poked her head through her line of vision, shooting her an all-knowing look.

lydia muttered some profanities under her breath, and hastily made her way over to their booth. “sorry i’m late!” she exclaimed, flinching when she smashed her foot off the table, trying to squirm into the tall booth in her tight pencil skirt. “traffic was ridiculous.”

allison rolled her eyes from the seat next to her. “yeah, yeah, enough about traffic. let’s get to the important issue at hand: this wedding.”

scott furrowed his eyebrows. “what wedding?”

lydia choked on the sip of water she was taking. “did you not get the invitation this morning?”

“what invitation?” stiles piped up, suddenly extremely interested in the conversation. “lydia, what invitation?” he pressed when she started giggling.

“invitations to aiden’s wedding,” allison replied.

both of their faces deflated until realization dawned for stiles. “oh shit. like aiden, aiden?” lydia nodded, biting her lip. “what the fuck, he invited you?”

“he even gave her a plus one and everything,” allison waggled her eyebrows.

“okay hold on. i’m still extremely offended i wasn’t invited to this wedding,” scott grumbled. “i only helped save his and his brothers lives a few times.”

allison shyly tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “you can be my plus one. if you want. i mean, i don’t really know who else to take,” she rambled off nervously.

“no yeah, i would love to!” a giddy smile spread across scott’s face, completely oblivious to the deep crimson stains on allison’s cheeks.

stiles grinned at the two of them, his gaze shifting to lydia. “okay there is no way in hell i’m not going to this wedding. can i be your plus one?”

“stiles, you can’t just invite yourself to a wedding,” scott rolled his eyes. the waitress arrived with their food and lydia smiled happily. it became a general rule that if any of them were more than ten minutes late to dinner, they would just order something. this rule became effective when stiles and scott’s hunger could not be satiated with simply bread.

stiles snorted, sending the giddy waitress a friendly smile. “the hell i can’t. do you remember how much i hated him? there’s no way i’m skipping out on a chance to show him how successful i am now.”

“that’s incredibly self-centred stiles, but i’ll take it,” lydia laughed, ignoring allison’s pointed looks. “there’s no way i’m showing up solo.”

stiles clapped his hands, mouth full of pasta. “perfect!” he mumbled. “when’s the wedding?”

“oh, it gets even better,” allison giggled, attracting their attention. “the wedding is literally in two weeks. this means he purposely decided to invite us last minute.”

scott raised an eyebrow. “that’s weird. i wonder what he’s playing at.”

“i know exactly what he’s playing at,” lydia snapped, stabbing her ceasar salad rather violently. “there is absolutely no reason i need to be invited to this wedding. exes are not supposed to be invited to weddings.”

stiles shrugged. “i mean, unless he’s trying to show you what you missed out on.”

“i’m sure i can do the same,” lydia scoffed. “is it inappropriate to bring my phd diploma with me?”

allison snorted, adding, “probably, but we can start calling you doctor from now on.”

lydia giggled. “perfect.”

**…**

the trip back to beacon hills was relatively pleasant. although aiden and his twin travelled a lot throughout their childhood, aiden considered beacon hills to be his most permanent home and decided to return for his lavish wedding. lydia had no idea what he ended up doing with his life, but knew through mutual facebook friends that his fiancee was ridiculously rich and blonde, so this wedding will be nothing less of extravagant.

the four of them travelled down together the day before the wedding. it was the second weekend of june and so, it didn’t leave them with much time to hang around with their families. they were still able to see them, but the main focus was on the day ahead of them.

lydia had grown exponentially from the self-absorbed queen bee from high school, but she still knew how to be a bitch when needed. and this wedding was no exception. she had been mentally preparing herself the whole ride up. she didn’t want to be disrespectful on his wedding day because contrary to his feelings, she was happy for him and only wished him the best. but she wasn’t ready for him to walk all over her either. so, she made sure she packed her most elegant dress that would be sure to catch eyes. she was already going to be the ex that everyone talked about, she may as well give them something worthwhile to talk about.

scott and stiles were under strict instructions to be early to pick them up from allison’s father’s house and under no circumstances were they allowed to bring roscoe, stiles’s beloved jeep. stiles had put up a fight (saying that was the only reason he truly even bothered to come back) but he just earned an eye roll that was clearly nonnegotiable. lydia and allison were both dressed in long, elegant dresses that were not going to be ruined by stiles’s dirty, albeit, trusty jeep.

aiden’s wedding was taking place at an extravagant hotel wedding plaza located a little outside of beacon hills (because there was obviously nothing that nice in town). the ceremony was happening in the outside garden, while the reception was immediately following within the hotel. it didn’t take long to get to the hotel and as soon as scott placed his car in park, lydia immediately felt like she was going to be sick.

“oh god,” she muttered, watching as stiles opened her car door and held out a hand. he was dressed gorgeously in a smart, black crisp suit with a bowtie. she was glad he didn’t insist on matching the colour of her dress because she thought that was incredibly tacky. he raised his eyebrows, silently asking her why she wasn’t getting out the car. “i can’t.”

stiles stared at her, slightly unsure if she was just messing with him. but then he saw her biting her lip and nearly ruining her perfect lipstick and he knew this was no joke. “hey, what are you talking about? this is going to be a walk in the park.”

“really?” she raised an eyebrow. “you’re not the ex at your exes wedding! god, that sounds ridiculous!”

stiles glanced over and noticed allison and scott walking slowly to the front entrance, presumably to give them their space. it wasn’t news to anyone that stiles could calm lydia down; must have something to do with being emotional tethers (or the fact that he knew her better than she knew herself and would do basically anything for her).

he squatted down in front of her and shot her a smirk. “are you kidding me, lydia? you have your doctorate. you are about to be the smartest person in that room - nothing should scare you right now.”

“yeah, well it does,” she mumbled, avoiding his gaze.

he grabbed her hand and pulled. “come on,” he insisted, “we’re doing this.”

lydia paled but allowed him to pull her up; she knew she had to get this over with at some point. and she didn’t want to make matters worse by arriving late to the ceremony - that would just be disastrous. scott and allison were waiting for them at the door, sending awkward smiles to the guests who kept passing them.

“oh good, you’re ready,” scott breathed in relief, holding the door open so they could pile in. there were clearly marked signs directing them to the outdoor ceremony. “holy shit,” scott found himself cursing before he even realized he had said anything.

they had made their way back outdoors and extravagant wasn’t even enough to describe it. the colour scheme was clearly white and pink because pink was everywhere; it was slightly sickening. there was a beautiful arc where they would be getting married, matching chairs and a gorgeous pathway made up of flowers. other than that, lydia hated everything.

“it’s like a cotton candy machine exploded,” stiles murmured.

the only thing lydia did appreciate were the multiple servers handing out mimosas and she didn’t hesitate to grab two (one was for allison).

“oh shit, it’s isaac!” scott grinned, pulling stiles away and leaving the girls by themselves.

lydia paled. “how could scott forget about the plan already?” she hissed nervously. “they’re not supposed to leave me!”

allison gigged, taking a sip and suppressing a moan at how good it tasted. “relax. the ceremony hasn’t even started, what could possibly go wrong?”

“lydia, is that you?”

lydia didn’t even have to turn around to recognize that voice and she wanted to kill allison. she guessed the crimson of her blood would go beautifully with the white chairs.

she pasted on a fake smile and turned around to see aiden, smiling at her. “hey! how are you?”

“living my best life, as you can tell,” he replied snakily, gesturing to everything around him. “it’s nice to see you. its a good thing they’re serving alcohol already. at least that’ll help you forget you’re at you exes wedding solo.”

how did he not know she was bringing a plus one?

she was slightly taken back by the forwardness of his words. wow, that took no time at all. allison’s eyes were wide and she could only look on as the horror unfolded. but something inside lydia snapped; she was not going to be treated like this, not by her ex.

“it is nice to see you! what can i say? i’ve always liked my mimosas,” she added on a fake smile, preparing herself for the next blow. “oh, didn’t you see my response? i’m not here alone.”

the smirk immediately dropped from his face.

“i’m here with my boyfriend.”

allison choked on her drink, her eyes widening even more.

“yeah? and who’s that?” he asked, a jealous glint evident within his eyes.

“he’s right over there,” she smirked, watching as he turned around. she leaned in close, making sure he could see where she was pointing. “i’m here with stiles.”

 


	2. chapter two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> second part!! 
> 
> it was going to be a two-parter but i'm stretching it to three.. hope you guys enjoy!! - also, i don't mean to make aiden such a dick, it's really only for the purpose of the story.. it just fits so perfectly!!
> 
> also, weird question: but have ppl stopped reading teen wolf fanfic or something?? i just feel like these used to get way more reads before. if that's the case, then it's really sad but i absolutely love writing stydia!!
> 
> any comments would be appreciated, but anyway, enjoy!!

the confusion on aiden’s face was evident. he was staring at stiles, looking grown up and mature in his suit, but he wasn’t understanding. how in the hell did that flailing, awkward dork end up with someone like lydia? he was even more floored by the fact that lydia seemed proud of stiles, looking at him fondly as he spoke animatedly with scott and isaac (he finally got over isaac’s scarves and sarcasm).

“you’re with stilinski?” the disapproving tone bled out in his voice before he could control himself.

allison’s face was purely comical; her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were watery from when she had choked on her drink.

“a lot has changed, aiden,” lydia replied wisely and cryptically.

“clearly,” he hissed and she knew the worst wasn’t over. “i can’t believe your standards have dropped that low. but then again, i’m sure you don’t have many suitors.”

lydia raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow; she wasn’t going to let his words get to her. “and what do you mean by that?”

“i’m sure they all run for the hills after they get what they want,” he eyed her up and down cruelly. “especially once they see the absolute basket case you are.”

allison’s frown became furious and lydia could see her gearing up to retort, until lydia subtly shook her head. she was going to fight her own battles.

“that’s incredibly creative. is that why you left me? oh wait,” she smirked cruelly.

aiden laughed bitterly. “you think that phases me? you breaking up with me was the best thing that ever happened to me. i mean, look at me now.”

“yeah, mooching off your rich fiancee,” allison muttered, seemingly unable to help herself. “do you even have a job?”

aiden’s eyes flickered over to her but he didn’t pay her much attention. “thats highly irrelevant.”

“listen, i’m not here to start anything with you. frankly, i don’t even know why i am here,” she sent him a pointed look, “but i am. so congratulations to you and yours.”

aiden glared at her. “you’re here because you need to see what you missed out on,” he snapped before thinking.

“that’s so unbelievably childish, aiden,” lydia snapped back in the same venomous tone. “i don’t care what i missed out on, i did what was best for the both of us and you know that! you’re happy with someone who isn’t me and i’m happy without you.”

she noted she didn’t say she was happy with someone else and he latched onto that like a lifeline. “but you’re happy without me? is stilinski really enough for you? he never was before.”

“well things change,” she snapped.

before lydia had the chance to elaborate (the discussion was getting heated and allison was watching on anxiously), the guys were making their way over. “hey aiden, congrats man!” scott cheered, ever the gentleman. he gave aiden a hug, a cheery smile on his face.

it took aiden a second to focus his attention on scott, almost as if he forgot this was his own wedding. he was still glaring at lydia and everyone could see it. “oh, thanks man. i appreciate it,” he stuttered out. then his eyes landed on stiles and his expression turned to stone. “i guess congratulations are in order for you too.”

lydia suddenly paled, trying to grab stiles’s attention with her glaring eyes. he looked confused. “me? oh, i mean, yeah i passed the bar and am now a successful lawyer but you don’t need to congratulate me,” he replied sheepishly, his right eyelid dropping in a wink.

aiden just ignored him. “i can’t believe you finally got her, but i guess good for you, man,” there was a bitterness present in his voice and lydia wanted to die. stiles was awkwardly sharing a look with scott, who just shrugged. “just be careful, she likes to play with feelings,” aiden stared right at lydia as he spoke, “don’t get too attached, is all i’m saying. she’ll ruin you.”

lydia’s mouth popped open; she was in shock. he shared one last look with stiles before walking away, presumably to greet more guests. because it was his wedding day and lydia could not believe that just happened… on his wedding day! “okay, what the hell just happened?” stiles asked, his focus returning to allison and lydia.

allison downed the remainder of her mimosa and hooked onto both scott and isaac’s elbows. “time for a refill, boys.”

stiles looked to lydia expectantly, but she needed a minute. “i told him we’re together now because he—“ she almost laughed out of spite when she heard her voice breaking because there was no way in hell she was crying right now. “i’m sorry, it just came out,” she tried to give him an explanation but her voice was shaky and she could not cry in front of this many people. “oh god, i have to go,” she mumbled.

it didn’t matter that they were already outside, she needed to be somewhere else - anywhere else. she quickly dropped her glass onto the tray of a server and bolted for the lobby, so she could find the women’s restroom.

“hey lydia, hold on, wait!”

of course stiles followed her. he grabbed her elbow when they were safely inside the hotel and examined her face when she wouldn’t meet his eyes. he ducked his head, searching for her green eyes that were slightly rimmed red.

“lydia,” he exclaimed softly, his eyes twinkling in amusement. “there is no way in hell half of the wonder twins is making you cry.”

lydia pushed him away from her. “you didn’t hear the things he said to me!” she snapped angrily. “he talks about me like i’m worthless, like i never meant anything to him! who does that?” she watched his eyes turn sad. “why does he hate me so much?” she whispered, hastily wiping away her tears because aiden was not ruining her makeup.

stiles sent her a fond look. sometimes he overwhelmed her with his ability to express his emotions so fiercely; it terrified her. “screw what aiden thinks, okay? he knows nothing; you’re amazing. you’re a freaking doctor!” stiles was trying so hard to convey his feelings into his words because she was literally the most amazing woman he had ever met in his life. “you are literally the smartest person in that room and you do _not_ need his approval; you don’t need him for shit. i know you - you’ve been ruining my life since third grade, i can handle it,” he chuckled when she rolled her eyes; he could see the smile playing on her lips. “now, let’s go back in there so i can be the best damn boyfriend you’ve ever had.”

she stared at his outstretched hand and his ridiculous gorgeous grin and she knew without a doubt that he was going to ruin her too.

**…**

lydia prided herself on being a polite person. her job was literally to help people and treat them - she was a good person. so, for the life of her, she couldn’t understand the foul and awful feeling she was experiencing while watching the ceremony. in a sense, she did know because there was no way she could take all of his earlier words lightly; they hurt and she would be remembering them for a long time. but that didn’t mean she wished aiden the worst. but for whatever reason, she still felt hatred coursing through her veins.

stiles was diligent and understanding of her every need. when they went back outside, allison had already explained the situation to isaac and everyone was trying to make this situation as pleasant as possible for lydia. she greeted familiar faces with stiles playing the part of loyal boyfriend. he kept asking her if it was okay when he did something, like place his arm around her shoulder or hold her hand, and it was sweet but he should know by now, she doesn’t mind his touches. they sat down for the ceremony and lydia kept her arm looped through his because he brought her comfort.

it was odd to see aiden so happy up at the alter, because he had just been so nasty earlier. he said his vows, he donned a new ring and kissed his wife, and then he was walking down the aisle with a smile on his face that even with everything they had been through, had lydia smiling as well. stiles squeezed her knee from where his hand was placed low on her thigh; he could see her smile and although, he didn’t know exactly what she was thinking, he was glad she wasn’t feeling upset anymore.

personally, he couldn’t understand why she allowed aiden to get underneath her skin as much as she does. but then again, he didn’t date the guy for over a year.

the rest of the afternoon had been proceeding nicely. the five of them had all been sat together and they were having the time of their lives, completely forgetting why they were even there in the first place. but of course, aiden took notice of how happy they looked and kept glaring daggers over in their direction.

“i swear, if he keeps looking over here, i’m going to punch him in the throat. i don’t even care that it’s his wedding,” scott interrupted stiles’s explanation of one of his court cases. it surprised everyone and he looked slightly sheepish but allison had filled him in on everything he said to lydia and he couldn’t help himself. he had always been protective of lydia; she was like his little sister.

lydia snorted, unable to hide her smile. “as much as i’d love that, please don’t give him any more reasons to hate me.”

“hey, why don’t we all go dance?” allison interjected, desperate for a distraction from all the drama. dinner had been marvellous, dessert was to die for and now the music was picking up as the sun was setting. their had been twinkling lights set up all around the dance floor and make-shift venue and it looked beautiful. if aiden was too distracted to enjoy his own wedding, that was not their problem and allison wanted to avoid any more confrontations if possible.

“isaac, that girl has been eyeing you all night. go ask her to dance, now,” allison demanded and isaac raised an eyebrow in her direction. “do i look like i’m kidding? go!”

he did as he was told and allison pulled scott to the dance floor in record time. “they’re cute,” lydia mumbled, watching her two best friends. “when is scott finally going to ask her out?”

lydia turned to look at stiles, his face set in a fake-shock expression. “what are you talking about?”

“oh, don’t lie to me,” she giggled. “it’s obvious he’s in love with her and you’re obviously in on it.”

stiles didn’t try to argue. “yeah, he is.”

“if either of you could read women, you would see that she’s in love with him too and all this dancing around each other could be easily avoided.”

stiles eyed her with a smirk. “professing your love for someone is harder than it sounds, lydia.”

his tone was insinuating and lydia wasn’t sure why. “i don’t ever recall you expressing your love for anyone, stilinski, so why the tone?”

stiles chuckled at her sass. “i distinctly remember a conversation that went along the lines of ‘i’ve been in love with you since the third grade’,” stiles shuffled on his chair nervously. “actually, this whole scene looks really familiar.”

lydia remembered. it was their high school dance and she kept refusing him but then he impressed her with his knowledge. it was when she first realized she didn’t have to hide herself from him.

with a newfound confidence and a sneaky smile on her face, she stood from her chair and placed herself in front of stiles, with an outstretched hand. “what are you doing?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“stiles, get off your cute little ass and dance with me now.”

stiles’s face paled and he was surprised and slightly amused that she remembered his specific words from so many years ago.

“and you’re not allowed to say no or be nearly as sassy as i used to be back then,” lydia laughed.

she laughed and he was absolutely hypnotized by everything about her; her beauty, her courage. he knew her and he knew she was broken and sometimes she let it get the best of her, but he knew _her_. he knew he would always love her; he’s never stopped.

he grabbed her hand and she cheered adorably in victory but suddenly stopped when stiles crowded her space and pulled her body even closer to his. he was staring so intensely into her eyes, she couldn’t move even if she wanted to.

the moment was perfect - the lights were twinkling, the music was playing softly and the guests around them blurred into the night.

but the moment his eyes slid past hers and saw the fuming groom, he knew it couldn’t happen like this.


	3. chapter three.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys!! 
> 
> BEHOLD: THE LAST CHAPTER!
> 
> i hope you've enjoyed this mini series, i absolutely adored writing it!! if you have, please check out my other collection of stydia one-shots :)
> 
> anyway, enjoy - hopefully i'll be back with something new soon!!

all it took was one look at aiden’s face and stiles’s spine straightened and he immediately flinched away from lydia’s touch.

this isn’t what he wanted. it is what he wanted; he wanted to kiss her and he’s wanted that for as long as he can remember, but not like this. not at her ex-boyfriend’s wedding, while he was glaring daggers.

he sighed when he saw the flash of hurt in her eyes and his chest constricted. it was almost like he could feel the physical pain he was causing her and it sucked.

“i—i should get another drink,” she stammered, doing her best to avoid his eyes.

lydia turned on her heel and made a beeline for the bar. she bumped into scott, but harl even noticed.

“what the hell?” scott murmured, when he reached stiles. “did aiden do something again? i swear to g—”

stiles shook his head. “no, it was me.”

“dude, what?” scott exclaimed, his eyes mirroring his disappointment. “she looked really upset.”

stiles rubbed a hand over his face and dropped back into his chair. “fuck, i fucked up.”

“what did you do?” scott asked curiously.

“i think we had a moment,” stiles muttered, his hands still covering his face. “and i don’t know, she looked at me and i think she wanted me to kiss her. and it felt right,” he couldn’t stop talking once he started. “but then i saw aiden right behind her and he looked pissed and i just couldn’t.”

scott shook his head, snickering. “how does he manage to ruin everyone else’s day on his wedding?”

“and it’s his wedding, right?” stiles added nervously; his eyes were searching for lydia but he couldn’t spot her. “i shouldn’t do anything dickish? like go for his ex?”

scott smirked, clapping stiles on the back. “nah, fuck ‘em.”

stiles’s eyes widened slightly; honestly, scott was hardly ever this crass. “dude, it’s his wedding day.”

“exactly, his wedding. which means he married someone else and he shouldn’t be doing that unless he’s completely over lydia,” scott explained, shooting aiden a nasty side eyes; it took a lot to get on scott’s bad side. “and lydia is not just his ex, she’s so much more than that, you know that. she’s out best friend and she deserves happiness more than anyone i’ve ever known.”

stiles cracked a smile, “damn, scotty. keep talking like that and i’m going to shed a tear.”

scott rolled his eyes. “shut up and go find lydia, or else i’m punching you in the throat.”

“couldn’t even if you tr—” stiles was not proud of the violent flinch he displayed as scott’s fist neared his face, and how he nearly tripped over his own feet trying to get away. he saw scott laugh and stop to talk to another member of their graduating class.

stiles was halfway to the bar, but he still didn’t spot lydia. not that it mattered because he was quickly intercepted by the groom. 

“oh, for the love of god,” stiles muttered. “do you know have guests to greet or something?”

aiden smirked at him. “all in due time, stiles.”

“what does that even mean?” stiles replied, looking around for any reinforcements; unfortunately, no one was available. “also, where’s your wife? shouldn’t you be with her?”

aiden frowned slightly. “i have the rest of my life to be with her.”

“oh, what a great attitude. freaking fantastic,” stiles mumbled sarcastically. “anyway, i was just on my way to the bar, so if you don’t mind…”

“i do mind, actually,” aiden replied and stiles considered the multiple ways he could incapacitate him without getting in trouble with the law; well, his dad was the sheriff in town… “it’s just, you and lydia, i’m having trouble understanding.”

stiles tried to hold his tongue for the sake that it was aiden’s wedding, but he couldn’t any longer; the sass was unleashed. “are you having trouble comprehending the fact that she got over your dumb ass?”

however, aiden didn’t seem phased. “no stiles, you’re understanding this wrong,” he was still smirking and stiles had never wanted to hit someone so much (except theo, of course). “trust me, i’m looking out for you. i don’t think you’re understanding what a piece of work lydia is.”

stiles’s eyes narrowed, because he couldn’t understand if aiden was just that stupid or wanted to earn a black eye on his wedding day. “are you forgetting that i’ve been friends for lydia for years? like i don’t understand what you’re trying to do right now.”

“being her friend is not the same as being in a committed relationship,” aiden remarked and his smirk suddenly turned evil, “although, you would know. you were a regular in the friend zone,” he didn’t miss the way stiles’s jaw twitched.

stiles clenched his teeth together so he could think of an appropriate response and get the hell out of aiden’s presence. “thanks so much for your concern, but i’m fine. and lydia’s happy, which is more than she can say for the time she spent with you. so please, go find your wife and treat her better than you did lydia.”

**…**

lydia could not get out of there fast enough. the abrupt change in his face and body language hit her straight in the chest and she couldn’t even breathe. she hadn’t thought she was reading the mood wrong, but apparently, she was way off. stiles looked uncomfortable, and she hadn’t seen that look on his face, since her queen bee days - at least not around her. 

“i—i should get another drink,” she mumbled and turned away quickly. she bumped into someone on her way to the bar but she kept walking. she didn’t want to risk looking at anyone for fear that she’d start crying right there and then. 

she almost laughed, again. how was she crying, again?

lydia decided the bar was definitely not the place for her to be right now and turned to go to the washrooms instead. the one thing actually working in her favour today is that it was empty and she could wallow in peace.

however, that was short lived too.

“hey, lydia, there you are!” she knew it was allison’s voice before she even saw her. “i was wonder where you’d gone off t—” allison stopped abruptly as she saw lydia hastily wiping away tears from her face. “lydia, what happened?” she was about to rush to her best friend’s side but a stony glare overtook her face. “was it aiden? did he do something? i knew i shouldn’t of left my knives at home.”

allison was halfway out the door of the bathroom, until lydia pleaded for her to come back. “no!” she blubbered, way past the point of caring that her voice was cracking. “it wasn’t him.”

“oh honey,” allison frowned, wrapping an arm around her friend. “what happened?”

lydia laughed because it sounded so ridiculous in her head, it was going to sound even worse out loud. “stiles and i were having a moment. i thought—i thought he was going to kiss me,” she laughed bitterly. “god, i’m an idiot.”

“what? no, you’re definitely not the idiot here.”

lydia wiped the last of her tears away; she had literally cried more today than she had in the past two years. “i don’t know why i was thinking anything was there. it’s been years; if something was supposed to happen, it would have already.”

“are you kidding me, lydia?” allison demanded in a tone that had lydia looking at her in shock and silence. “god, for people as smart as you two, i don’t know how you guys are so clueless.”

lydia was still looking at her, as if she had two heads. “what?”

“stiles has loved you since third grade. i don’t care what he says, he hasn’t stopped,” allison explained exasperatedly, almost as if this was common knowledge. “seriously, i don’t know how it’s been so long and you two aren’t together. scott and i are tired of scheming against you two.”

lydia furrowed her eyebrows. “what?” she found herself saying, again. 

“doesn’t matter. what matters is that we’re at your ex-boyfriend’s wedding, who inconveniently has been paying a lot of attention to you. of course stiles doesn’t want to make a move on you now, when aiden is constantly over your shoulder!” 

lydia blinked.

“shit.”

“shit is right,” allison grinned, looking extremely self-satisfied. “now, let’s go. you really need to talk to him and i really need a drink.”

lydia nodded numbly and allowed allison to pull her out of the bathroom. “what do i say?” she asked in a panic. it was one thing thinking of this all in your head but having to actually articulate the words to his dumb, adorable face was completely different. he always gave her his full attention and it intimidated her.

“no, no,” allison shook her head, “i’m done. this is all you.”

lydia nodded, trying and failing to gather some confidence. she was a doctor for god’s sake - this was nothing! yet, she still felt like she was going to throw up any second. it definitely didn’t help when she saw aiden talking to an individual with their back towards her. and it certainly didn’t help when she realized that individual was stiles. 

they were too engrossed in each other, aiden didn’t even notice lydia approaching. “being her friend is not the same as being in a committed relationship. although, you would know. you were a regular in the friend zone.”

lydia’s jaw dropped and she knew this was the final straw. fortunately, stiles beat her to it.

“thanks so much for your concern, but i’m fine. and lydia’s happy, which is more than she can say for the time she spent with you. so please, go find your wife and treat her better than you did lydia.”

lydia’s chest filled with affection for this boy she should have given a chance ages ago. she knew, without a doubt, she loved him, and she had for as long as she could remember. 

“alright,” allison snapped, making both boys turn around. stiles had his jaw clenched but his eyes softened when he saw lydia; aiden looked surprised, but kept his eyes on allison. “this has gone on way too long and frankly, is absolutely ridiculous.”

“i—” aiden started, but allison cut him off.

“no! this is your wedding day, what the hell are you doing over here?” she asked in an accusatory tone, hands on her hips. “you and lydia didn’t work out, and you have no right to get involved in her life now. this is absolutely ridiculous.”

aiden seemed at a loss for words; i don’t think there was anything he could say. he took one more final look at lydia and turned to make his way to the bar. 

“god, finally,” allison flipped her brown curls over his shoulder. “now, it’s time for you two to have a talk,” with that, she stalked off. lydia could only hope it was to confess her love for scott because this confident, take charge attitude she had was really working for her. 

stiles grabbed lydia’s hand and led her off to the side. “i’m so sorry, lydia.”

“god, don’t be sorry,” lydia shook her head, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “it all makes sense now. it’s my freaking ex’s wedding, i’m sorry.”

stiles grinned. “i tried so hard to be nice to him, i really did.”

“stiles, i don’t want to talk about him anymore,” she said slowly. 

“well, we could talk about that,” his smile widened as he pointed across the room, to where allison and scott were sharing a sweet kiss. “

lydia smiled wide as the couple separated and glanced in their direction. allison looked sheepish but scott was ecstatic. as lydia turned back to stiles, he was giving scott the thumbs up.

“i don’t want you to be my fake boyfriend anymore,” lydia blurted out and she cringed. out of all the ways to phrase it, she had to say that?

stiles’s eyes looked confused, “um, okay? i figured we were done playing pretend anyway, you know, considering…”

“no, that’s not what i meant,” lydia shook her head and now she looked sheepish. “i want you,” she whispered quietly; he moved closer. “you’ve been with me through every milestone, every important moment in my life. and the truth is, i love you,” she was preparing for the worst but all she saw was his smile widen. “i’ve felt something for you since junior year but i’ve never felt something so intense; i didn’t know what it was. but it’s love and i love you, stiles.”

stiles surged forward, capturing her face between his hands. this time, his eyes didn’t stray; he was completely and utterly consumed by her, and he kissed her. it was soft and slow and not nearly enough, but they had all the time in the world. 

stiles didn’t get the chance to say he loved her back, but she knew. it was in his eyes and in the way he held her close to him so tenderly. 

scott and allison had made their way over, gleeful smiles and glasses of champagne. “i think today deserves a toast,” scott said, handing stiles and lydia a glass. 

“here’s to our next chapter together,” allison cheered, clinking her glass with the rest. for as long as she could remember, it had always been the four of them. they solved mysteries together, defended each other, took care of each other, graduated together and moved away together. she could not imagine a greater group of friends than the ones she was blessed with, and this next chapter would only bring them closer together; it’s how it should have always been. “god, i love you guys,” she whispered, her eyes slightly watery as they cheered and gathered in for a group hug. 

this was a bit too emotional for their usual so it didn’t surprise anyone when stiles made his next comment. 

“can you guys believe lydia used to date the groom? talk about an upgrade.”

they all groaned, but they couldn’t deny it was the best damn wedding they’ve ever been to.

that is, until their own weddings, of course. 


End file.
